More than five years had passed by the time she regained her independence and learnt to walk again, but she wasn't going to let anything stop her from having the life she always wanted.

The Picton woman was 27 when the car she was in was hit head-on by a car driven by a speeding drunk driver about five minutes from her home.

"I was a front seat passenger and the car was thrown 25 metres by impact, the car that hit us was airborne, and although my injuries were bad, I was lucky to be alive," she said.

"I was left unable to walk unaided for about five years, with a condition called complex regional pain syndrome, which is a neurological condition."

She said the accident put her priorities into focus, but also meant she lost a huge chunk time to find a partner and settle down.

"It was such a prime time in my life, so once I regained mobility - which I was told I wouldn't - I had more ambition around what I wanted to get out of life," she said.

"Losing that chunk of time really pushed my biological clock.

"I always wanted to be a mum - I have worked in childcare, I've nannied and I was always very maternal as a young child as well - and I didn't ever want to be forced to find a partner, so decided to take matters into my own hands."

In 2022, Samantha started the process of having a baby through IVF with donor sperm, which she said was more difficult that she anticipated.

She went through an ectopic pregnancy and miscarriage before her fourth embryo transfer allowed her to conceive.

"I think I was a little bit naive going into the IVF journey, it definitely required a lot of patience and perseverance and there was a lot more waiting than I expected but I also wouldn't change any it, because I now believe that it all was leading me to Banks," she said.

Born last August, she said her son Banks, who is now six months old, completed her.

"The journey to get to him is what made it even 10 times more special when I eventually got to hold him," she said.

"I already felt settled as a person on my own independently but he definitely completed me. Seeing the way his eyes light up and he looks at me and the fact that I am his safe place is so lovely."

Samantha also said she had not felt the absence of a partner throughout the intense newborn stage, as she always knew she would be doing it on her own.

"Even on the nights where he's waking more often, I just feel so grateful that I'm the one that can comfort that and all he really needs in that moment is me," she said.

Samantha's fertility specialist Dr Elizabeth Maxwell, who works at Wollongong's Auburn Street clinic of IVF Australia, said it was becoming more and more common for single women to have babies with donor sperm.

"I see at least one woman a week," she said.

"The last couple of years has been really great for single women in that they really are trying to take control of their future and either freezing eggs, which we're seeing a big increase in as well, or choosing to just start their family with donor."

"The data shows we've seen a three times increase over the last five years and that's just IVF, not including intrauterine insemination with donor sperm."

Dr Maxwell, who has appeared alongside some of her local patients as part of Nine's show Big Miracles, said she believed the lost COVID years had partially driven this trend.

"Everyone was sort of stuck at home and feeling quite a loss of control over their own sort of lives and their destiny," she said.

"So women are just saying 'no, I'm not waiting around anymore, I'm sick of going on bad dates trying to meet someone who I want to have a baby with' and I think they feel more confident to do it by themselves."

She said women considering becoming a parent alone should first meet with a fertility specialist, who would go through medical history, talk about social support and outline the process.

"Then they can join a waitlist for the sperm, or some do have a known donor that they bring through the clinic, but most people go for the deidentified donor where the waitlist is between four and eight months," she said.

They also have counseling to help them navigate what it may be like having a child who's conceived with donor sperm, including the legalities and how to talk to their child about their origins.

"It's now thought psychologically that it's far better to be very open and upfront about the child's origins from the start, so as soon as they can speak, you can be quite upfront about it," Dr Maxwell said.

She said this open and honest approach also worked for women concerned about how people would accept their decision.

"One concern that patients do have sometimes is talking to their parents about it, especially if they have quite traditional parents or parents who come from religious or cultural backgrounds where this may not be common," Dr Maxwell said.

"But I've found in 100% of cases that once they just are open and honest and talk to their parents, they are supportive of them and just want them to be happy in the end. And they are also just are delighted to have a grandchild."

Samantha said she had experienced only positive reactions when sharing her decision to have a baby alone.

"It's been so well received and it is something I quite openly share, when I see people or if I meet people because I do think it is something women need to know that they can do if that's what they choose," she said.

She said she went in thinking about how she would explain her choice to Banks in the future, which is how she chose a sperm donor from Fertility Australia's sperm bank.

"When Banks turns 18, he'll actually see the file that I've chosen and I want him to be proud of why I've picked who I picked," she said.

"For me, that was about the values as a person - so interests and hobbies that were similar to mine, and not about any physical traits. I'm confident that when he sees that he'll 100% know why I picked that person."

She said she was pleased to see Red Wiggle Caterina Mete last month announce she was pregnant with identical twin daughters, due in July, after IVF with donor sperm.

"Obviously a public figure like that is great for bringing more awareness, and I think that just goes to show it's definitely something that is moving on up," she said.

"That's why I choose to share my journey and my story as well, because it helps women to know they can do it and that there are people that have done it.

"We've grown up with the understanding that you need to have a partner to have a baby and to have a complete life and that is not the case anymore.

"I'm still very open to meeting a partner if the right person comes along and would add value to my life, but it's not a need and a necessity and I feel very complete."